


In This Life or the Next

by makototachibana



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, MAJOR ORIGINS SPOILERS, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-17
Updated: 2016-03-17
Packaged: 2018-05-27 05:39:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6271942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makototachibana/pseuds/makototachibana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“And I’d choose you: in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality. I’d find you and I’d choose you.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	In This Life or the Next

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pyuupyuu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pyuupyuu/gifts).



> * WARNING FOR MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE ORIGINS EPISODES OF MIRACULOUS LADYBUG *
> 
> this is dedicated to my partner in fighting crime, my fav sinner, my irl chat noir, leah.
> 
> I've had this idea for a while but without sarah's help I couldn't have done it because I'm terrible at history so shoutout to her for editing this and helping me with historical accuracy.
> 
> anyways, without further ado, happy birthday mon minou!

Akhetaten, Egypt 1340 BCE 

 

Ladybug has been blessed with a kwami from the gods. She’s nothing more than the daughter of a couple of humble merchants before the small creature comes into her life, claiming she was chosen as the one to cleanse evil amongst her people with the powers of luck. Ladybug accepts her destiny, not being one to defy the gods, and uses her new blessing, Tikki she’s called, to help defeat evil that corrupted Egypt.

One night a shadowy figure is spotted by someone and Ladybug takes it upon herself to investigate, only to find that it wasn’t a messenger of evil, but an ally. Or so he claimed.

He says he is Chat Noir, and that he was also blessed with a kwami in order to protect their world from evil. Since the cat was a being considered to be very close to the gods, Ladybug trusts him. Their relationship had always been strictly professional, remaining as soldiers of the gods above all else, and protected Egypt for many years. With their combined effort they even manage to stop Tutankhamun from attempting to bring his beloved Nefertiti back from the dead using dark magic.

However time doesn’t care if you’ve been blessed by the gods, and Chat Noir is the first of them to die. And although Ladybug told herself not to get attached to the feline, she finds herself weeping at his burial.

  
  


Qin State, China 475 BCE

 

It seems as if everywhere Ladybug looks there is a war going on. Every border of every state of China is fighting for power, so when Ladybug’s kwami comes to her she’s not all that surprised. Someone has to do something about these warring states, and if it’s going to be anyone it might as well be her.

But she’s not alone. A young boy resembling a feline comes to her aid one day. And although he is more excitable than anything, she allows him to join her in fight for peace in her country. Surprisingly they make a good team, and manage to help the Qin army win many battles over their years of service, subduing the tribes to the east to make sure that their territory was safe.

They grow fond of each other over the years, Ladybug coming to think of Chat Noir as family. They spend most of their time together, traveling throughout Qin and keeping it safe. It gets to a point where they don’t even need words to communicate sometimes, with a single look or gesture Ladybug can know what Chat Noir’s next move will be, and vice versa. They learn each other’s quirks and habits, and even though they never reveal their faces beneath the masks, Ladybug feels as if she knows the real Chat Noir.

However, the pair of warriors die young. A group of tribesman ambush them one night and they fall to their swords. As they lie in the dirt clutching at their wounds they silently hold onto each other, not needing words in their final moments. A pair of bright eyes and a caring smile is the last thing Ladybug sees before she fades away, and she knows she was loved.

  
  


Athens, Greece 325 BCE

 

Ladybug is the daughter of a painter and philosopher, and she’s seventeen when her kwami meets her, burdening her once again with the task to protect her people from evil. She accepts without hesitance, falling into the pattern as if she’s done it before in another lifetime. She uses her lucky yo-yo as a means to cleanse evil running rampant throughout Greece. The wars amongst other city states and Mediterranean civilizations was beginning to get out of hand.

One night though, she’s outnumbered, and a masked man comes to her rescue wielding a long baton. His cat-like ears make Ladybug laugh even though the man is more stoic than anything, despite his silly appearance. The black cat and her agree that the Fates has brought them together, and that they are meant to perform as a team. 

They fought and won many battles, but one night things get out of hand, and Ladybug’s life is the cost of their mistakes.

Chat Noir wishes he could’ve saved her just once more.

  
  


Florence, Italy 1420 CE

 

Ladybug’s life is relatively easy for once. She works for a wealthy merchant family and has befriended their only son, their friendship a secret due to the fact that if anyone knew, they might get the wrong impression. They become close though, Ladybug considering him to be her best friend despite their differences in class, and she can tell he feels the same.

Her work as a defender of justice is a way for her to escape her daily monotonous activity. On most nights she works to stop people from attempting to sabotage the works of art being created at the time. It isn’t the most difficult thing, but important nonetheless.

One night she comes across a boy clad in black, claiming to be her new partner. She argues that she doesn’t need one due to the lack of dark forces, but he tags along with her on patrols anyway. She finds him annoying and clingy at first, but after some time, she grows used to his presence beside her.

When the older man Ladybug worked for dies, leaving his fortune and business to his son, the two begin to drift apart as he is forced to work longer hours, leaving not much time left in his schedule for friendly chatter. Ladybug found comfort in knowing that even as her best friend drifts away from her, she still has that annoying, catty boy beside her every night no matter what.

Over time, as the rich boy and Ladybug grow further apart, Ladybug begins to admit that she had started to grow feelings for her nighttime companion. She confesses this to him one night, only to be rejected. Chat Noir apologizes saying that his heart belonged to another, even though he could never act upon his feelings due to their different places in life. He also admits to feeling as if he’d neglected her recently, and wished deeply that he could fix things.

They remain partners despite their messy feelings until death parts them one fatal afternoon. Despite all the strings her old, wealthy friend took to prolong her life, Ladybug dies from illness in her master’s chambers. As she closes her eyes to accept her fate she could hear the boy’s last words to her, his tone dripping with sorrow and regret.

“I’m sorry I could never love you the way you deserved to be loved.”

  
  


Boston, Massachusetts 1775 CE

 

As the tensions between the American Colonies approached a breaking point, Ladybug and Chat Noir decide to join a secretly trained militia in order to prepare for conflict with the British troops occupying Boston. They become known as a couple of the top minutemen in no time, being able to get into a fight and finish it before it could escalate very far. 

They were only young kids, but determined nonetheless to fight for their freedom. One night they, along with many other Patriots, get called to action at Concord. They arrive shortly and are able to defend their land as best they can with what they have. It’s their first real battle, and the pair had trained long and hard for it, but it wasn’t without it’s difficulties. 

Ladybug had taken down multiple Red Coats, and had lost sight of her partner during the midst of battle. As the British began to retreat, Ladybug scoured the battlefield for Chat Noir, only to find him laying underneath a tree, clutching at his chest.

“Are you alright?” Ladybug demands, rushing over to see what damage had been done. He must’ve been lying there for a while, as the pool of blood around him was quite large, and his breaths were becoming more and more raspy.

“I’m perfect,” Chat lies, forcing out a grin that was too painful to look at. “How about you? Didn’t get hurt did you?”

“No, you stupid cat. I’m fine.” Ladybug feels her voice hitch and her eyes becoming wet, but she holds back the tears, trying to remain strong for her partner. But clearly, her facade wasn’t working.

“Don’t cry, my lady,” Chat begins, reaching for her hand. She takes it without hesitation, gripping it tightly in her own. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

Ladybug laughs as she begins to cry, her tears falling down onto Chat’s wound and mixing with his blood. His eyes begin to close, but he’s smiling softly as if he wasn’t in pain, but simply going to sleep.

A nurse came over eventually to find Ladybug lying over Chat Noir’s dead body. It took four men to pry her away.

  
  


Moscow, Russia 1812 CE

 

Ladybug is light on her feet when the French army show up in an attempt to conquer her homeland. Despite her best efforts though, Ladybug and her people find it in their best interest to retreat further into Russia due to how outnumbered they become by the Grande Armeé, allowing the French to succeed in invading Moscow. 

When she thought all was lost, a Prussian outsider shows up at their base in an effort to help. He dressed only in black, and went by Chat Noir, unwilling to give out his true name. Ladybug finds out that he’s a kwami wielder like herself, and the two team up, plotting strategies against the French.

She never figured out why he came to help, but she decides not to question it. He’s loyal and trustworthy and a good comrade in her time of strife. She feels as if she’s bound to him somehow, as if she had been waiting for him for a long time.

As a last effort to send the French packing the duo aid in burning down Moscow, denying the enemy the luxury of living in her city. The French leave during the winter, having hardly any shelter and rations to help them survive, and Ladybug has never felt a more bittersweet victory. It only got better when the rest of Europe grew tired of the awful dictator and ran him into the ground at Waterloo.

After all was said and done, Chat Noir claims that he has to leave. Ladybug begs him not to, for they had grown close over the course of time they’d spent together. But he refuses her, saying he has a family to get back to in his hometown. This comes as a shock to Ladybug, always having seen him as more of a vagabond than anything.

On the evening of his departure into the white wasteland she grabs him by the forearm as a last effort to stop him from leaving. She feels her stomach twist at the thought of losing him, which is odd, since they hadn’t even known each other too long.

“Will I see you again?” 

“Perhaps in a better life.”

  
  


Kyoto, Japan 1945 CE

 

After surrendering in the second World War, Ladybug and Chat Noir are finally able to retreat back into their civilian lives full time. This, of course, is a good thing. With the war being over the two are finally able to rest and count their losses, but leaving behind their superhero personas is another loss in itself. 

The government had signed the surrender agreement and most of the country was celebrating the end of the war. The bombings had taken a toll on the entire country, and at last it’s time to take a breather from it all. Ladybug and Chat Noir, happy as they were for the suffering of their people to have finally ended, were in mourning that day. They both knew that after the war ended so would their masked lives.

“Perhaps I will see you in civilian life,” Ladybug comments on their final night together. The pair were sitting on the roof of one of the many temples in Kyoto, overlooking the city as it faded into night. 

“Who else will get this place on it’s feet again?” Chat Noir teases. And although Ladybug knows he’s just avoiding facing the real question she posed, she laughs anyway.

“I’m going to miss you,” she whispers honestly, staring out into the golden sky as the sun begins to set over their homeland. It’s the first time she’s ever outwardly shown any sort of affection towards her partner, but she can’t deny it.

“I’m not going to miss you.”

Ladybug is shocked by his insensitive answer. “How can you say that?”

“Because I know in my heart I will see you again. So there’s no point in being sad and missing you. And besides we still have tonight. The sun hasn’t set yet.”

Ladybug can’t help but smile at Chat’s naive view of the world, and silently prays that somehow he’s right. That this isn’t their last night together. Their last sunset. Their last moment beneath the sanctity of their masks.

She silently takes Chat Noir’s hand in hers, averting her gaze away from the horizon and onto her partner’s face for what feels like the last time. “I think I could’ve loved you, Chat Noir.”

It’s the most honest thing she’s ever said to him.

He doesn’t say anything back, and he doesn’t need to. Ladybug can read everything in his eyes and the way he tightens his hand around hers. It’s a bittersweet night for everybody, but Ladybug wouldn’t wish to share it with anyone else.

  
  


Paris, France 2015 CE

 

Marinette has always been an incredibly timid and unlucky girl. So when a terrifying super villain begins rampaging throughout Paris and she’s told by an equally terrifying bug-looking creature that she’s the one who has to fight him, she immediately dismisses the thought.

But upon seeing her new friend bravely diving headfirst into the action, she knows deep down that she has to follow suit. She transforms for the first time and it’s new and nerve wracking, but she goes after the villain anyway, only to find herself becoming tangled up with a boy dressed up as a black cat due to her own clumsiness with her newfound weapon.

The boy calls himself “Chat Noir”, and he’s clearly cocky and overeager as he rushes to the scene. Despite her hesitance though, the two manage to take down the stonehearted boy. But it doesn’t last long, because of course Marinette manages to mess everything up. She tries to pass the Ladybug baton on, but that doesn’t go as planned either. And when both of her new friends are cornered, she manages to find the strength within herself to transform again.

She’s not the only person doubtful of her skills though, as the entirety of Paris knew of her failure to finish the job right the first time, and she considers giving up again. But then Chat Noir is there, and he grabs her by the shoulders and tells her that they  _ can _ save the day, and asks her to trust him.

Marinette doesn’t know if it’s the way he says it or the look in his eyes, but she puts her faith in him. With fresh confidence she feels an ancient urge within her telling her to jump into action and cleanse the evil she missed the first time around, and she does, miraculously.

Later that day the new boy in her class who she had detested at first for being associated with Chloé shares a moment with her in the rain, handing her his umbrella as a peace offering. She can tell by the look in his eyes that he only wishes for friendship, and in that moment he’s beautiful and kind and perfect, and she feels something inside her blossom as if she’s a flower seeing the sun for the first time.

  
  


Paris, France 2018 CE

 

Ladybug finally learns who Chat Noir was beneath his mask. After so many years of fighting together she let the wall of anonymity that separated them break down, and to her surprise, it isn’t as frightening as she thought it’d be.

Of course Adrien Agreste, the love of her life, is also Chat Noir, her best friend. And despite Marinette’s self-consciousness he assures her that he has never loved her more, and that he will never leave her side.

As they sit atop one of the many roofs of Paris in each other’s arms, Marinette feels her heart swell as tears begin to fall. She’s filled with an overwhelming sense of relief as well as thousands of other emotions that had been pent up by past Ladybugs through the centuries. Adrien only holds her tighter, promising to never let go.

“ _ Mon Minou _ ,” she whispers, gripping the back of his shirt in her fists. She doesn’t get to finish what she was going to say, because Adrien cuts her off.

“I know.”

  
  


Paris, France 2027 CE

 

For the first time in history Ladybug marries Chat Noir. The ceremony is small and intimate, only close friends and family there to see the pair declare their eternal love, sealing it with a kiss. Everyone cheers as they walk down the aisle as newlyweds, and Marinette thinks she can hear her kwami crying tears of joy inside her bouquet. 

The reception is full of joy and laughter, and as the two hold each other for their first dance Marinette lets herself rest her head on his chest as they sway gently to the music.

“Thank you,” she whispers, listening intently to his heartbeat. 

“For what?” Adrien asks, his voice gentle and filled with happiness.

“For giving me your umbrella way back on the first day of school. I never thanked you then, so I’m doing it now.”

“That thank you has been quite a long time coming,” Adrien laughs, pressing a chaste kiss to the top of her head. “I would give you a thousand umbrellas if you wished it.”

Marinette giggles in reply, shaking her head. “I already have everything I could ever wish for.”

“I couldn’t agree more, my lady,” Adrien replies, his Chat Noir tone saturating his voice. “I just wish we could’ve done this sooner. Perhaps in the next one of my nine lives I’ll get it right.”

Marinette reaches up on her tiptoes to kiss him briefly, hating to let him think that he could’ve possibly done something wrong. “I think you did it perfectly this time around, kitty. I would do it all over again without changing a thing.”

Adrien smiles, the same look in his eyes that he had twelve years ago when they were just clueless kids in the rain. But Marinette thinks that perhaps there’s something more behind those eyes, something that goes far beyond her childhood memories. Either way, it’s something she plans on never letting go of. Not in this life or the next.


End file.
